IPOH, Perak: A Malaysia Digital (MD) status company, AIREI Sdn Bhd, has launched its second artificial intelligence (AI)-based smart palm oil mill, this time with a significantly larger capacity of 60 tonnes per hour, up from 45 tonnes per hour at its first mill.
In a statement today, AIREI mentioned that the launch held at Perak Motor Co. (PMC Oil Mill) in Teluk Intan saw AIREI’s proprietary AI system deployed alongside a new partnership with the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC).
The partnership marks a shift from a single company’s innovation towards a broader national conversation about AI’s role in the palm oil industry.
AIREI Perak Motor Palm Oil Mill Division’s Managing Director, Steven Yow Thin Chin, said less than two years after unveiling the world’s first AI-based smart palm oil mill, AIREI’s return with a bigger deployment and a national digital agency by its side signals that the technology is moving from proof of concept towards standard practice on the mill floor.
“At the end of the day, a mill is measured by its oil extraction rate (OER) and this system has made a real, measurable difference on that front, with OER improving in the range of 0.1 per cent to 0.2 per cent.
“This was made possible by AI, which eliminated human error and removed much of the guesswork that used to shape how we plan our operations,” he said in the statement.
Meanwhile, MDEC’s Chief Executive Officer, Anuar Fariz Fadzil, said in the same statement that palm oil, as a strategic national commodity, stood to benefit significantly from greater digital and AI adoption.
He added that the deployment of AIREI’s AI-based smart palm oil mill system at Perak Motor Co. demonstrates how AI can improve operational efficiency, optimise resources and deliver better production outcomes.
“In line with Malaysia Digital 2030 (MD2030), MDEC aims to enable more home-grown innovations to be developed, adopted and scaled across key industries, while creating high-value jobs and advancing Malaysia’s aspiration to become an AI Nation by 2030,” he said.
AIREI said that built on results, their AI-based system has delivered measurable gains at the mill such as reduced oil losses in which mesocarp oil losses on wet basis (OLWB) at the press station have dropped by 13 per cent and improved extraction as OER has improved by 0.1 per cent to 0.2 per cent.
Other than that is the manpower optimisation as AI has delivered a 20 per cent reduction in foreign operator dependency within the first month of implementation, with the reduction projected to reach 40 per cent and standardised operations as AI helps ensure that agreed operating parameters and standard operating procedures are consistently followed, reducing dependence on individual operator judgement.
Lastly is better management visibility in which a central AI control environment gives management greater visibility into mill performance, allowing operational issues to be identified and addressed more quickly.
AIREI’s founder and Chief Executive Officer, Surendran Kuranadan, said in the same statement that when the company first deployed this system, the goal was to prove that AI could work on a palm oil mill floor.
“AIREI’s AI-based smart mill identifies production anomalies, analyses their root causes, rectifies them and makes accurate decisions to keep processes within milling parameters, driving oil losses down to the lowest levels this mill has seen.
“We’re proving that it can scale and that Malaysia can lead this transition for the region. The fact that palm oil markets across the globe are already watching tells us we are on the right track,” he said.
AIREI mentioned that interest in their approach is extending well beyond Malaysia’s borders as ASEAN neighbours Indonesia and Thailand, both major palm oil producers in their own right, are following developments closely, as are Latin American producers including Mexico and Colombia, where palm oil cultivation is expanding rapidly.
It added that several parties across those markets are already exploring adoption of similar AI-based models, drawn by the efficiency gains on offer and by a return on investment that mills can expect to see within 18 to 20 months, on a deployment cost that scales with the capacity of the mill.
“Malaysia’s position at the front of this shift gives the country a rare opportunity to export not just palm oil, but the technology and expertise behind producing it more efficiently,” according to the statement.
The launch was attended by representatives from MDEC, Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), industry partners and Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), reflecting an ambition that extends beyond the mill floor as discussions at the event touched on potential collaboration and internship opportunities at the AI-driven smart mill.
AIREI is opening its doors to palm oil millers and plantation groups across Malaysia and beyond who want to see what those numbers could look like at their own mill, and interested parties can reach out to AIREI directly or visit www.airei.global to start the conversation.
AIREI is a dynamic multinational company based in Malaysia and India, specialising in pioneering solutions that utilise big data analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), supply chain traceability, and hyperledger fabric blockchain technology as they focus on innovative palm oil solutions through secure software platforms and excel in customised robotics development. – BERNAMA
